Duan Yan borrowed a large basket from the estate and used it to carry the things over to the Song family’s home.
“Why did you bring so much?”
Song Xuemu was chopping firewood in the courtyard. He spotted Duan Yan approaching from a distance and hurried over to help him with the load.
“There was plenty at the estate, so I took whatever I could.”
Duan Yan set down the basket. “Is Old Mr. Song feeling any better?”
“Much better. He woke up for a while this morning, drank a little rice porridge, and then went back to sleep.”
Song Xuemu called for Duan Yan to come inside and sit down. It was already afternoon, and the sun had grown increasingly scorching. Anyone left outside would be roasted.
In weather this hot, even without the epidemic, it was easy to suffer heatstroke.
Duan Yan still had matters to attend to and had not intended to stay long. But after chatting outside for a while, he noticed that Song Fengsui was nowhere to be seen and could not help asking, “Song… Uncle Song isn’t home?”
“Yesterday, there was an incident with a wild boar attacking someone. Autumn is almost here, and once the crops in the village ripen, I’m afraid even more wild animals will come down from the mountains.
“While the epidemic is spreading, we haven’t been assigned any farm work. My elder brother said he would go to the back mountain to gather some firewood so I could build a fence. At the very least, it might keep out a few wild animals.”
Previously, the whole family had been sent out every day to clear land and prepare fields. There was always more work than they could finish, leaving them no time to tidy up their lodgings.
Not to mention that the ground beneath their feet and the mountains behind them all belonged to someone. Even if they went to the public mountain at the back to gather a bundle of firewood, the villagers would scold them if they were seen, saying that as criminals, they had no right to take advantage of the other villagers.
Now, villagers were forbidden to leave their homes unless absolutely necessary, which made it easier to gather firewood without being noticed.
Duan Yan glanced at the empty yard. It truly did need a fence.
If he had not still been occupied with pressing matters, he would have helped them build it himself.
“This old storehouse was never sturdy to begin with. Enclosing the yard would make things safer. I’ll have two men from the estate come over to help repair it. The fence needs to be built, and the storehouse needs fixing too. Otherwise, how will you get through this season if you encounter strong winds or heavy rain?”
Song Xuemu hurriedly waved his hands. “We appreciate your kindness, but with the epidemic going around, the village is under strict watch. People from the estate aren’t allowed to visit one another. If the village head or the patrols catch you, it’ll be a serious problem!”
Duan Yan fell silent. He had not considered that.
He raised his head and glanced at the sky. It seemed unlikely to rain over the next couple of days, so he decided that once he had finished his current work, he would come back and help them himself.
He noticed that Song Xuemu was splitting wood with a stone axe. The hoe leaning against the wall was made of iron, but it was badly rusted and full of gaps.
Duan Yan promised Uncle Song that the next time he came to the village, he would bring them several better farming tools.
After that, he prepared to leave the village, though he could not stop his gaze from drifting toward the house twice.
When he heard that Duan Yan was leaving, Song Xuemu said, “The sun’s so fierce. Why don’t you sit for a while? I’ll go wake Suisui!”
At last, Duan Yan heard news of Song Fengsui and quickly said, “There’s no need to wake him, Uncle. His sleep has never been very good. It took him a great deal of difficulty to fall asleep, so let him rest a little longer. I don’t have anything important to discuss with him anyway.”
“Huh?”
Song Xuemu looked at him suspiciously.
Duan Yan had merely been speaking the truth. But when he heard Song Xuemu’s startled response, he realized belatedly that he should not have put it that way.
Looking at Song Xuemu’s expression—which plainly said, “You haven’t been sleeping with him, so how would you know he has trouble sleeping?”—Duan Yan hurriedly explained, “Someone at the residence who was caring for him told me that he didn’t sleep well. I imagine it was because he was away from home and worried about his family. Now that he’s back with his parents and elders, his mind is at ease, so he should be able to sleep better.”
Song Xuemu gave an awkward smile. Suisui had looked perfectly well when he returned and seemed no different from before. If his elder brother had not been so suspicious and worried, infecting him with the same anxiety, he would not have thought much of it either.
“Suisui is still young, and he’s been spoiled by the whole family since childhood. It’s only natural for him to have trouble sleeping when he’s away from home. Don’t take it to heart.”
Duan Yan lightly touched the account book tucked inside his robe. He had originally intended to let Song Fengsui look through it as well. If he learned that there were still reliable people at the estate, he would certainly be delighted.
But for now, he could only let it go.
“I won’t disturb you any longer. If anything happens at home, Uncle Song, just send word to me.”
With that, Duan Yan took his leave.
Song Xuemu escorted him for a short distance before turning back.
Later that afternoon, Song Fengsui awoke from his sleep in a daze.
There was not even a bed in the house. He had been sleeping on a mat on the floor, and with the weather so hot, he did not have to worry about catching cold.
But even with some dried grass spread beneath him, sleeping directly on the ground left him feeling the chill of the earth. The floor was hard as well, and after sleeping there, his entire body felt stiff and sore. His head was still somewhat dizzy.
He moved his foot. After applying medicine and resting for half the day, his sprained ankle no longer hurt very much.
He went straight to his mother’s room. Seeing that she was still asleep, he touched her forehead. The fever brought on by her anxiety and distress had gone down, and he let out a long breath of relief.
Duan Yan had only just left that morning when his mother woke up, allowing mother and son to see each other. Her illness had been caused by worry; now that the remedy had arrived, her heart had naturally eased.
After checking on his mother, Song Fengsui went to see his grandfather. Both of them were recovering, and the heavy burden in his heart finally lifted.
When he reached the main room, he caught the smell of something pungent from afar. He quickened his pace and found Song Xuemu setting out a large basin and rubbing salt into strips of pork.
“Where did all this salt come from? And the peppercorns?”
As soon as he finished speaking, Song Fengsui added, “Duan Yan came, didn’t he?”
Song Xuemu shook the salt from his hands. “That’s right. He came by for a while, then left.”
Song Fengsui’s brows twitched. “He’s gone? Why didn’t you wake me, Uncle?”
“I was going to call you, but he said there was nothing important to discuss and didn’t want to disturb your rest. I invited him inside to sit, but he wouldn’t even come in. He hurried straight out of the village.”
Seeing the expression on Song Fengsui’s face, Song Xuemu asked, “What is it? Was there something you needed to talk to him about?”
Song Fengsui pressed his lips together. There was nothing he absolutely needed to say.
“I only thought that since he had brought things for us again, I should thank him in person.”
“There’s no rush. He’ll come again.”
Hearing that, Song Fengsui felt as though he had received some reassurance. He gave a quiet hum.
As for Duan Yan, he followed the route he had taken the previous night and left the village with surprising ease.
But once he entered the mountain forest, where the trees towered overhead and vines and weeds tangled together, finding his way became extremely difficult. The previous night, the forest had been pitch-black, and he had not dared to light a torch, relying entirely on Lin Erlang to guide him. He had made an effort to memorize the route, but in the daylight, after taking several twists and turns, he still lost his way.
Fortunately, he found footprints left by people who had passed through before, as well as broken branches and signs of disturbed brush. Following those traces, he managed to find a path.
After traveling through the forest for most of the day, the view before him suddenly opened up. At last, he had reached the edge of the woods. He had assumed that after wandering through the mountains for so long, he must be nearing the road leading to the official highway.
He quickened his pace and pushed his way out—only to find a village spread before him.
Relying on his memory, Duan Yan recognized it at once.
He had somehow made his way to Tianshui Village!
Liucun lay between Yanzhen and Tianshui Village—in other words, he had gone the wrong way in the mountains. Most likely, some wild beast had trampled over the traces of the path he had taken the night before, and he had followed the wrong tracks all the way here.
Duan Yan sighed. Though he had gone in the wrong direction, he had no intention of turning back into the mountain wilderness. The forests around Yanzhen were dense and the terrain treacherous. Anyone who was not thoroughly familiar with the area could easily get lost.
He could pass through the village and take the main road. That way, he would not go astray again. Moreover, there had yet to be any news of the epidemic reaching Tianshui Village, so there were no guards stationed here. He also owned a farmstead nearby, and passing through the village would not arouse suspicion.
Duan Yan therefore slid down a gentler slope from the mountainside onto a narrow village path, winding into the village.
Once inside, the way became familiar.
The afternoon sun was weaker than at noon, but the heat rising from the earth had not diminished in the slightest. Even the ground beneath his feet was scorching.
Though no cases had yet been reported in Tianshui Village, the villagers had heard about what happened in Liucun and were naturally afraid to leave their homes. Thus, there was not a single person to be seen in the village.
Duan Yan was striding forward with his head lowered when he suddenly heard a door close. He instinctively turned to look—and unexpectedly spotted someone he knew.
On the small tiled-roof house not far away, a man stepped out. As the door swung shut behind him, the gentle smile that had originally rested on his face vanished without a trace. It was replaced by a troubled expression. His straight back sagged, and he looked as dejected as rice seedlings left to dry in the fields beneath the sun for half a day.
By an odd coincidence, this man was none other than the usually crafty Wang Quan.
Only after seeing him here did Duan Yan remember that the young man was originally from Tianshui Village.
Wang Quan had once worked at the estate in the village. Later, his efficiency had impressed Duan Yan’s former self, while the steward of the Tianshui estate had repeatedly praised him. Thus, he had been promoted and sent to work at the iron shop in the city, where he could handle matters closer to Duan Yan.
Duan Yan said nothing. He hid behind a haystack and watched as the young man came out of his home—but did not leave. Instead, he stood silently gazing at the door for a long while.
Perhaps because he was at home, Wang Quan had shed the sly manner he usually displayed outside. His true nature emerged: he was not fond of smiling, nor of speaking much. Even his features seemed somewhat different.
Who would have thought that, after standing silently by the door for some time, the young man would tilt his head slightly and wipe away his tears? Yet he seemed afraid that making a sound would disturb the person inside. He retreated several steps and walked out into the courtyard.
Wang Quan’s heart was bitter. The blazing sun beat directly down upon his body, yet he felt none of its sting. All he could feel was the icy chill in his chest.
That bastard Chen Hu had actually said that until Wang Quan completed the task, he would not send Hu over to treat his mother.
Wang Quan knew that Chen Hu was holding the matter over his head, forcing him to submit.
But he was not a fool. Once he carried out the deed, there would be no turning back. Whether the matter came to light or not, he would never be able to clear his name. And the closer he drew to Chen Hu, the more he sensed how ruthless and vicious the man was. Since Chen Hu could harm Duan Yan, use him as a scapegoat, and have him killed, that was most likely the fate he had in store for Wang Quan as well.
Not to mention that Wang Quan could never bring himself to poison someone—especially when that person was Duan Yan. Though he resented and hated him in his heart, Duan Yan had, after all, promoted him. No matter how deep his grievances, they had never reached the point of plotting another man’s death.
Yet if he refused to do it and went against Chen Hu’s wishes, how could he persuade Hu to come and treat his mother again? Her illness was precisely the kind that none of the doctors in the area could cure. Only the medicine prescribed by Hu had any effect.
He had been raised by his mother alone from childhood. The poor state of her health was largely the result of all the toil she had endured bringing him up by herself. Now that she was old and it was time for him to support her, how could he bear to watch her suffer while dragging her sick body through each day?
He was trapped on every side. He could not give up one thing, nor sever himself from the other. How could he not be in agony?
If his death could secure both outcomes, he would willingly die in their place!
“Wang Quan.”
Wang Quan’s footsteps stumbled when he heard someone call his name. For a moment, he thought he was hallucinating. He turned around instinctively, only to see that Duan Yan had somehow come up behind him.
“B… Big Brother. What are you doing in the village…?”
Duan Yan walked over. “What happened to you?”
“N-Nothing.”
Perhaps because he felt guilty, Wang Quan’s heart began to pound. “It’s just too hot. I must have gotten a little heatstroke.”
Duan Yan naturally knew he was lying and spoke bluntly. “Look at you—your head hanging and your ears drooping. Anyone with eyes can see that something has happened. What is it? Has something gone wrong at home?”
Wang Quan opened his mouth, instinctively preparing to come up with some other excuse. But his heart was already clogged with worry, and even his usually quick mind could no longer turn.
His lips moved soundlessly before he finally murmured, “My mother is ill.”
Duan Yan’s brows drew together. “Has she contracted the epidemic?”
Seeing that Duan Yan had misunderstood, Wang Quan hurriedly shook his head. “No. No one in our village has caught it yet. My mother has had a chronic illness for years…”
“What illness? Didn’t you call a doctor?”
As he spoke, Duan Yan vaguely recalled that Wang Quan seemed to have once asked his former self to use his connections in the county to find a good doctor for his seriously ill mother. His former self had readily agreed, but then had become caught up in one matter after another and completely forgotten about it.
If it had not come up now, Duan Yan would scarcely have been able to find the matter anywhere in his memories.
Sure enough, a flash of anger that Wang Quan could not conceal crossed his eyes when he heard this. Yet he knew better than to quarrel with Duan Yan, so he turned his gaze away awkwardly.
“I did… It’s just that the doctors in town are limited in skill. None of them can keep her illness under control.”
Duan Yan noticed a trace of Wang Quan’s emotion. He was not angry; instead, he felt helpless.
How was his former self so often muddleheaded? When one of his subordinates came to him because his mother was ill, and he had agreed to help, he should have seen the matter through. If he could not manage it, he should at least have given Wang Quan an answer sooner, then sent some gifts to express his concern. It was a simple matter. Yet he had chosen the course most likely to chill a person’s heart.
To suddenly offer an awkward, inexplicable apology now would only seem strange, so Duan Yan said, “I’ll go see your mother.”
“The house is a mess, and my mother’s condition is an old one. It’s nothing serious. Besides, she only just fell asleep before I came out. There’s no need to trouble yourself, Big Brother.”
Wang Quan tried to dissuade him. He knew that this man often acted on a whim. What use would it be for him to glance at his mother? He was not some divine physician.
Duan Yan let out a breath of stale air. “I know you probably hold a grudge because I failed to find a doctor for your mother. In any case… I admit that I was foolish before, and I apologize to you now.”
Wang Quan froze. He had not expected Duan Yan to suddenly say such a thing. The man admitted his fault readily enough, but the apology only made Wang Quan feel even more miserable. It was only after running into him today that Duan Yan had finally remembered Wang Quan had once asked him to find a doctor.
If they had not crossed paths, Duan Yan might never have remembered it for the rest of his life.
“Why are you saying this, Big Brother? I know you have many matters to attend to.”
Wang Quan muttered sullenly, “I’ve already said everything there is to say.” With matters having come this far, he dropped the sly, crafty manner he usually adopted when dealing with people. For a moment, he looked like a child who was always up to mischief to win attention, only to find himself suddenly receiving genuine concern from his elder brother—his heart warmed, yet he was too embarrassed to show it.
Duan Yan had seen this sort of thing many times. He knew that Wang Quan was not truly bad at heart; most of it was simply the result of the circumstances he had been forced into.
So he patiently said, “Take me to see your mother. I know a physician who may be willing to come and examine her. He may not be able to cure her, but at least it gives you one more hope.”
Wang Quan pouted. “Which physician? I’ve already asked every doctor in and around Yan Town to come. If he’s a local physician, then there’s no need for Big Brother to trouble yourself.”
“You definitely haven’t asked this one, and his medical skills are quite remarkable.”
Wang Quan was skeptical, but Duan Yan spoke with such certainty that, after being coaxed by him, he eventually led Duan Yan home.
